Review of the 2016 Ford Ranger Wildtrak 3.2 tdci

The Ford Wildtrak blurs the lines between the traditional bakkie and the SUV by introducing a level of refinement not usually associated with a workhorse.

The Wildtrak is Ford’s remarkable Ranger bakkie, literally glammed up to be a ramp model without losing any of it’s farmhand ability. I don’t mean that in a derogatory way either, the Wildtrak is glorious at doing bakkie things, like load carrying or towing or even four-by-four offroad holiday trips, but so is it’s less illustrious and cheaper cousin the Ranger XLT.

The Wildtrak is a fun car to drive in the city with lots of kerb appeal, nice ride height, comfortable seats, good in car entertainment (SYNC2), excellent ground clearance and tons of presence. You feel like you’ve arrived before you’ve departed if you know what I mean. The Wildtrak, in the front seats, feels like a SUV, in fact it feels and looks and even drives very much like the Everest it has so much in common with.

It should be noted though that visibility front and aft is severely limited because of the sheer size of the Ranger and adding the cameras and park distance sensors as standard just makes a lot of sense. Other interesting included features are the lane departure warning and pre-collision warning.

The SYNC2 connectivity system is accessed via an 8-inch touchscreen infotainment system. The system is simple enough to use and features such as Bluetooth connectivity and voice activation are convenient. We were a little disappointed to find that navigation isn’t offered with the system but there are two USB ports, an auxiliary port and front and rear 12V sockets. The new Everest comes with SYNC3 and hopefully that will be introduced into the Ranger range too.

If anything irked us it’s the amount of different plastic finishes in the cabin and the retention of a traditional key when keyless entry and driving is almost the standard for cheaper and lower spec vehicles.

In conclusion, we enjoyed our drive in a really great double-cab bakkie with some top finishes but with a staggeringly expensive price tag that leaves me wondering if it’s really worth the extra over the XLT.